Water board

ABSTRACT

The water board includes a substantially planar board forming a pair of bat shaped wings adapted to be towed by a water vehicle. A pair of upstanding handles is disposed on the top surface of the planar board, which the user may grasp for towing the user and maneuvering the board. A pair of fins depends from the bottom surface of the planar board to stabilize and control maneuvering of the water board both above and below the water. A towing bracket with a towing ring is secured to the top surface of the planar board so that the board may be connected to the water vehicle via a towline.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to aquatic recreational devices, morespecifically, to a water board for stable and controlled maneuverssimulating marine animal swimming characteristics while being towed.

2. Description of the Related Art

Aquatic recreation is a favorite pastime for many, especially during thesummer. It is a great way to cool down while enjoying the sun, the waterand the scenery both above and below the water surface. Recreationaldevices such as boats, canoes, surfboards, body boards, water and jetskis facilitate much of these activities. While each provides its ownbrand of thrill and enjoyment for the user, many do not approach theelusive simulacrum of water creatures diving in and out of water andswimming in the depths, an experience that many would enjoy.

Some solutions have been proposed that simulate swimming characteristicsof marine animals such as diving and surfacing while moving on thewater. These devices include a planar board or water plane towed by awater vehicle. The user may manipulate the board to dive into and out ofthe water, and the user may perform some underwater maneuvers with thesame. However, it seems that most of these solutions do not appear to bevery stable nor do they appear to be easy to maneuver. Thus, it would bebeneficial in the art to provide a water plane with stable ridingcharacteristics while permitting easy maneuverability.

Thus, a water board solving the aforementioned problems is desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The water board includes a substantially planar board forming a pair ofbat shaped wings adapted to be towed by a water vehicle. A pair ofupstanding handles is disposed on the top surface of the planar board,which the user may grasp for towing the user and maneuvering the board.A pair of fins depends from the bottom surface of the planar board tostabilize and control maneuvering of the water board both above andbelow the water. A towing bracket with a towing ring is secured to thetop surface of the planar board so that the board may be connected tothe water vehicle via a towline.

These and other features of the present invention will become readilyapparent upon further review of the following specification anddrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an environmental, perspective view of a water board accordingto the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the water board according to the presentinvention.

FIG. 3 is a front view of the water board according to the presentinvention.

FIG. 4 is a top view of the water board according to the presentinvention.

FIG. 5 is a bottom view of the water board according to the presentinvention.

FIG. 6 is a partial side view in section of an alternative embodiment ofa water board according to the present invention having a differentmaneuvering system.

Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistentlythroughout the attached drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention relates to a water board, generally referred to byreference number 10, with stable and controlled maneuvering capabilitiesfor an enjoyable simulated marine animal swimming experience. As shownin FIGS. 1-3, the water board 10 includes a substantially planar boardshaped like the wings of a bat. The wingspan of the water board 10accommodates a wide range of user sizes and provides more than adequatesurface area for traversing water both on and below the surface of thewater. The water board 10 is preferably made from a laminate of foam,resin and fiberglass layers, but other buoyant and waterproof materials,composites, laminates or combinations may be used to form the same.

The front of the water board 10 includes oppositely disposed chamferededges 14 extending outwardly from the top and bottom surfaces 11, 12.The chamfered edges 14 meet to form a relatively narrow or acute front,outer edge 13. The front, outer edge 13 allows the water board 10 to cutinto the water with ease when tilted downwardly for diving or tiltedupwardly for surfacing. The rear of the water board 10 includesindentions or scalloped portions 15 which define the trapezoidal batwingshape and provides comfortable accommodations for the arms of the userP. Note FIGS. 4 and 5.

The water board 10 is adapted to be towed by a watercraft, and tofacilitate this, the water board 10 includes a towing system 30. NoteFIGS. 1, 2 and 4. The towing system 30 includes a towing bracket 31disposed on the top surface 11 of the water board 10 with a loop throughwhich a tow ring 32 may be attached. The towing bracket 31 may besecured to the water board 10 by fasteners 33 from the bottom surface12. A towline L connects at one to the tow ring 32 and the other endconnects to the water vehicle.

As an alternative to the above, the towing bracket 31 may be configuredsuch that the tow ring 32 would be disposed on the front, outer edge 13or anywhere between the top surface 11 and the front, outer edge 13.These locations are more preferable than near or on the bottom surface12 because these other locations may hinder or cause unnecessary orundesirable drag when the user P desires to dive. In other words, if thetowline L extends from below the front outer edge 13, the user P wouldhave to tilt the water board 10 against the force of the towline L inorder to dive. On the other hand, it may be desirable to have a towingsystem 30 where the tow ring 32 is disposed below the front, outer edge13 for easier upward tilting of the water board 10 due to the increasedupward force from the towline L.

To stably control or maneuver the water board 10, the water board 10includes upstanding, spaced apart handles 20 disposed on the top surface11 and at least a pair of spaced apart fins 21 depending from the bottomsurface 12. The user P hangs on the handles 20 so as to be dragged bythe towing action from the water vehicle. The fins 21 ensure stablemovement of the water board 10 in the water because they assistmaintaining the water board 10 in the line of desired direction. As analternative and to increase stability, the water board 10 may includeadditional fins 21 disposed along the bottom surface 12 and/or at oradjacent the outer lateral edges of the water board 10. Thus, to steeror control the water board 10 in a stable manner, the user 10 tilts thewater board downward to dive, upward to surface or rise in the water,left to bank left, right to bank right, rotate left about the towingpoint defined by the towing bracket 31 to turn left, or rotate rightabout the towing point defined by the towing bracket 31 to turn right.

FIG. 6 discloses a further alternative for stably controlling ormaneuvering the water board 10. In this embodiment, the control ormaneuvering system 40 includes spaced apart handles 41 integral withfins with the handles 41 protruding through the top surface 11 and thefins depending from the bottom surface 12. A ball joint 43 connects thehandles 41 and fins 42 to the water board 10. The ball joint 43 permitsrotation of the handles 41 about the vertical axis as indicated byarrows 44 and about the horizontal axis (in and out of the view shown inFIG. 6) as indicated by arrows 45. The ball joint 43 may be biased tonormally maintain the fins 42 in a straight orientation.

User manipulation of the handles 41 about either of the axes mentionedabove steers the water board 10. Thus, rotating the handles 41 in thedirection 44 turns the water board 10 left or right. Tilting the handles41 in the direction 45 banks the water board to the left or the right.Tilting the handles 44 either forward or backward against the topsurface 11 causes the water board 10 to dive or rise respectively. As afurther alternative, the bottom ends of the 42 may include horizontallydisposed fins to assist diving or rising of the water board 10.

The following describes how the water board 10 is used. Once the waterboard 10 is hitched to a water vehicle via the towline L, the user Pgrasps the handles 20 or 41 in preparation to be dragged with the waterboard 10. As the water board 10 is traversing the water, the user P maytilt the water board 10 down via the handles 20 or 41 to dive into thedepths. While gliding underwater, the user 10 manipulates the handles 20or 41 in the manner described above to perform maneuvers similar to afish or other marine animals. To rise in or out of the water, the user Ptilts the handles 20 or 41 upward. Thus, it can be seen that the waterboard 10 provides a stable platform for experiencing the maneuvers ofmarine animals.

It is noted that the water board 10 encompasses a variety ofalternatives. For example, the bracket towing system may be replacedwith a plurality of reinforced tow holes formed near the front of thewater board 10. The towline L may be attached to these tow holesdirectly or through a system of intermediate tether lines to secure thewater board 10 for towing. As another example, the handles 20 or 41 mayinclude slip resistant covering for a secure grip. The handles 20 or 41may also be curved and/or ergonomically formed with indentions thatconform to the user's fingers. The shape of the fins 21 or 42 may rangefrom triangular to curvilinear that permit good and stable slicingaction through the water. The ball joint 43 may alternatively beconstructed as a collapsible baffle or accordion that permit similarmanipulation of the handles 41. Moreover, the handles 41 and the fins 42may be respectively linked so as to move together. Furthermore, thesurface of the water board 10 may include a variety of patterns, colors,and/or indicia according to user desires.

It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to theembodiments described above, but encompasses any and all embodimentswithin the scope of the following claims.

I claim:
 1. A water board, comprising: a substantially planar boarddefining a trapezoidal batwing shape, the planar board including a topsurface, a bottom surface, a front end, and a back end, the board havinga substantially acute angle profile along the front end for easy divingand rising of the planar board in or on water; a controlling mechanismdisposed on the top and bottom surfaces for maneuvering the planarboard; and a towing assembly disposed adjacent the front end of theplanar board, the towing assembly being adapted for attachment to atowline for towing by a watercraft; wherein maneuvering of the planarboard underwater simulates swimming of marine animals.
 2. The waterboard according to claim 1, wherein the rear end of the planar boardincludes indentions defining the batwing shape and accommodating thearms of the user.
 3. The water board according to claim 1, wherein theacute angle profile is defined by oppositely disposed chamfered surfacesextending from the top and bottom surfaces and meeting to form the frontouter edge.
 4. The water board according to claim 1, wherein thecontrolling mechanism comprises: a pair of spaced apart handles disposedon the top surface, the handles being adapted for gripping by a user tomanipulate the planar board; and a pair of spaced apart fins dependingfrom the bottom surface.
 5. The water board according to claim 4,wherein the handles are integral with the fins.
 6. The water boardaccording to claim 5, further comprising a pair of spaced apart balljoints mounted in the planar board, the integral handles and finspassing through the ball joints, wherein rotation of the handles about avertical axis concurrently rotates the fins to maneuver the planar boardleft or right, and wherein tilting of the handles about a horizontalaxis concurrently tilts the fins to maneuver the planar board to bankleft or right.
 7. The water board according to claim 6, wherein the balljoints are biased to maintain the handles and fins in a predeterminedorientation.
 8. The water board according to claim 1, wherein the towingassembly comprises: a towing bracket disposed on the top surface, thetowing bracket including a loop; a tow ring operatively attached throughthe loop; and fasteners disposed on the bottom surface to secure thetowing bracket.
 9. A water plane, comprising: a substantially planarboard defining a trapezoidal batwing shape, the planar board having atop surface, bottom surface, a front end, and a back end, the front endhaving a substantially acute angle profile permitting easy diving andrising of the planar board in or on water, the board having oppositelydisposed chamfered surfaces extending from the top and bottom surfacesmeeting to form a front outer edge defining the acute angle profile;scallops formed on the rear end defining the batwing shape andaccommodating the arms of a user; a pair of spaced apart handlesdisposed on the top surface, the handles being adapted for gripping bythe user to manipulate the planar board; a pair of spaced apart finsdepending from the bottom surface; and a towing assembly disposedadjacent the front end of the planar board, the towing assembly beingadapted for attachment to a towline for towing by a watercraft; whereinmaneuvering of the planar board underwater simulates swimming of marineanimals.
 10. The water board according to claim 9, wherein the handlesare integral with the fins.
 11. The water board according to claim 9,further comprising a pair of spaced apart universal joints disposed onthe planar board, the integral handles and fins being connected to theuniversal joints to maneuver the planar board.
 12. The water boardaccording to claim 9, wherein the towing assembly comprises: a towingbracket operatively attached to the planar board; a tow ring detachablymounted to the towing bracket; and fasteners for securing the towingbracket to the planar board.